Love Me More Than You Hate Him
by Moultipass1
Summary: This is not how it was supposed to go. This is not what she was hoping for when Klaus spared Tyler's life. Post-5x05, spoilers


**Okay, do they want us to hate Tyler? What's up with that? I never hated him before. Didn't like him very much, sure, but that's just because he was in the way of Klaroline. And now I could rip his heart out myself. Seriously.**

**Anyway, I think we all needed something sweet and comforting after that – I know I did. So here's a short drabble meant to be just that. Please review :D**

**Disclaimer: don't own them**

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Once she's done crying her heart out, Caroline stares at her phone for almost an hour, trying to talk herself out of the decision she's taken. Trying to remember why it's a bad idea.

Only she doesn't want to convince herself. She's tired of putting others before her. Look where that got her with Tyler. He was supposed to be the love of her life and she did everything for him.

'_Love me more than you hate him.'_

'_I'm sorry, Care. I can't do that.'_

Another sob falls from her lips.

'_I can't do that.'_

This is not how it was supposed to go. This is not what she was hoping for when Klaus spared Tyler's life and when he gave her her graduation present.

'_Tell him that this is the mercy I extend for your sake.'_

'_Tyler is now free to return to Mystic Falls.'_

As her last conversation with Klaus comes to mind, the tears stop falling, shock pushing grief to the back of her mind when the realization hits her hard.

Tyler wouldn't let go of his revenge for her.

Klaus did.

"Fuck this!" she mutters as she starts typing the text she's been dying to send since her _ex_-boyfriend walked out of her room – out of her life.

_Tyler's coming after you._

As she hits send, she nibbles on her lower lip worriedly. This is not the right thing to do and she knows it, but suddenly she doesn't care.

Because Klaus loves her more than he hates Tyler.

Knowing how much he hates Tyler, that's saying something.

And she might have just made the worst mistake of her life. Or she might have just opened the door for a whole new adventure that will take her everywhere she never knew she wanted to go.

His response is quick, and exactly what she had expected.

_Are you telling me for my sake or his?_

_Yours._

Even though the original hybrid is pretty much invincible, she knows how determined Tyler can be and she also knows that Klaus has some powerful enemies in New Orleans. If Ty finds them and starts working with them…

_Trouble in paradise?_

She scoffs at the hopeful question before she gets a hold of herself. To be fair, it's hard to judge his mood over text messages, and though she has no doubt he's quite happy that things with Tyler have gone south, she also knows that if she could see him, she would find genuine concern in his eyes.

He's been putting her first for a while now.

_Paradise's over. _

_Are you okay?_

_No._

She can be honest with him. She doesn't have to pretend that her breakup doesn't hurt just because everybody else is having their own drama. She doesn't have to pretend that she's getting over Bonnie's death just because everyone else is mourning her too. And she doesn't have to pretend that Stefan's amnesia when she desperately needs her best friend isn't killing her just because it's also hurting everyone else.

_Do you want me to kill him?_

A tearful laugh escapes her at that, because she knows that the offer is both dead serious and meant to cheer her up. And she also knows, with absolute certainty, that whatever she decides, he's going to respect her wish. Which is more than her fucking _boyfriend_ was prepared to do.

_No. But a few broken ribs would be nice._

_Don't tempt me, sweetheart._

Before she has a chance to respond, another text from him follows.

_Is there something I can do?_

She finds herself staring at her phone once more, pondering. She knows exactly what she wants to say, knows that this is the direction she wanted this discussion to take when she sent her first message, and she's once again trying to remind herself that it's a horrible idea. That he's the bad guy and he's plotting something she doesn't even want to know about in the deep south and he's hurt her once and he can do it again and she broke up with Tyler two seconds ago and this is a chance she's not sure she can take and her friends are gonna hate her and…

_Yes._

Oops. Seems her fingers have a mind of their own.

_Anything. Tell me._

She can't bring herself to say – well, _type_ – it. She doesn't want to have to. She wants him to make the offer, to take that last step. Because there's still that insecure little girl somewhere inside that Tyler's betrayal brought back to the surface and that's wondering if she misread things, if she's given too much importance to small signs, if he's changed his mind about her. And she's aware of how unfair it is to leave it up to him after she's done nothing but reject him for months, but she can't help it. It's a risk she can't take without his help.

So she just waits, her hands shaking with anticipation and fear, her heart hammering in her chest, and those three minutes before he realizes that she's not going to answer and additional two minutes before he figures out what she wants him to say are the longest five minutes of her life.

_Come to New Orleans._

She's packing before she's even finished reading the text.

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**FIN**


End file.
